When KXEG-AM (1280 The Trumpet) launched its “1280 – The Trumpet” Alexa skill, it became the first Christian radio outlet to do so, Radio Online reports. KXEG partnered with XAPPmedia to develop the skill to give Amazon Echo owners access to the station its lineup of Christian programming, regardless of location. “1280 The Trumpet is Arizona’s oldest Christian Radio Broadcaster. It has been on the air since 1956 and now is the first Christian broadcast station with an Alexa skill for Amazon Echo,” said Gabrielle Broadcasting CEO Jacob Barker. “Millions of people have bought an Amazon Echo over the past two years and we want them to have access to high quality Christian broadcasting. We also want to continue to serve our Phoenix community and be available on all the devices that people use everyday.”
The launch of the KXEG-AM Alexa skill was yet another first for XAPPmedia. Earlier this year, its B100 Alexa skill was the first Amazon Alexa skill for a radio station to include live stream, on-demand listening and podcast content. XAPPmedia CEO Pat Higbie believes that voice interactive experiences, like Alexa skills, are the future of broadcast radio. “Forecasts show that Amazon Echo will be in over 20 million U.S. homes in 2017 and 15 million cars. Those numbers are expected to grow nearly five fold by the end of 2020. We are proud to be working with 1280 The Trumpet to bring Christian broadcasting to Phoenix listeners and the broader Amazon Alexa user base. The Amazon Echo is bringing radio back into the home and the Gabrielle Broadcasting team is leading the way among Christian radio stations,” added XAPPmedia CEO/co-founder Pat Higbie.
To learn more about custom Alexa skills for radio, click here.
Related Posts
NAB Insights on Amazon Echo. Claim Your Station Name Now.
New Report: 10 Best Practices for Putting Radio on Amazon Echo
3 Reasons Why Radio Stations Should Launch Alexa Skills Now